The Joys of Gardening

25 Comments

“A flower doesn’t lose its beauty because weeds mocked it.”

~Matshona Dhliwayo

 

Thanks to all the rain we had earlier this summer, our garden has been an explosion of color—especially the lilies!  It’s also been an explosion of weeds. As with everything, we take the good with the bad. However, one bad thing Farmguy and I like to avoid is the use of harsh herbicides, preferring to use natural, organic methods to control overgrowth of grasses and weeds around the farm.

Recently, we discovered a natural alternative to controlling all the unwanted stuff that pops up in the garden and beyond—a simple and easy cocktail of Epsom salt, white vinegar, and dishwashing liquid.  This is how it works:  the salt as well as the acetic acid in the vinegar draw moisture from the weeds. The dishwashing liquid acts as a surfactant, which is an agent that reduces the surface tension, causing the weed-killing concoction to bead on the leaves—instead of being absorbed by the plant.  So, on a warm and sunny day, the results of this homemade spray will be obvious in a matter of hours as weeds turn brown and wither.

Although a good alternative, this natural spray is not built to work its way into the root system and may require multiple treatments to deter hardier weeds.  If you’re interested, scroll to the bottom of the post for the recipe and photos. 🙂

 

Happy Gardening!

 

 

Organic Weed Spray

 

Ingredients:

 

1 gallon white vinegar

2 cups Epsom salt

1/4 cup dishwashing liquid

Method:

 

Pour Epsom salt into a sprayer.  Add vinegar and dishwashing liquid.  Shake well.  Wait approximately 15-20 minutes for salt to dissolve.  Shake well and spray.

*Avoiding overspray on flowers, pick a hot, dry day to spray weeds until saturated, and they will wilt and shrivel up within hours.

 

An industrious Farmguy mixing the organic weed spray

 

Have a wonderful week!

Categories: Gardening, Green Hill Farm, Photography

Tagged as: , , , , ,

25 Comments »

  6. I’m definitely stealing this tip …. anything that keeps pesticides out of our garden is grabbed with both hands by me. The photos are spectacular, Tonya … absolutely brightly brilliant 💐 🐝 ☀️

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  7. My Father was a professional pilot for most of my life, and had to retire at 62(now 89). Included in his aviation career was arial weed spraying…he started to notice the major loss of wildlife after he started this part of his flying, and felt so bad about the part he played in this tragedy! He is lucky to be alive, since the life span of a sprayer is only hours, and the fact that many of the chemicals he used are also very dangerous to humans. Way to go for all of you who do safe gardening!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  8. I see these things all the time and wonder if they really work, so it’s nice to know YOU used it and like it. I will definitely try it in the driveway cracks. Thanks!
    Your flowers are luffly, m’dear and I appreciate seeing them in all their glorious splendor! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.